The Best Present
by HPfanatic592
Summary: All you need to do is look to the past to find it's all you ever really needed. Complete.


Harry sat on the frayed couch at the Burrow on his birthday. It was already nighttime; the day had been a blur. The presents, the party, the cake…but on his seventeenth birthday, Harry only wished for one thing.

He wanted his parents.

Harry, of course, knew it was impossible. The next time he saw his parents he would be dead. So he absentmindedly looked at the photographs of the wedding, both smiling happily, their best man standing beside them, his face full of laughter. Tears welled in his eyes. It had been two years since Sirius's death but Harry still couldn't get over it. Sirius was almost Harry's father. But Lord Voldemort had taken that away. He took his parents, his family, his friend, his godfather, and his mentor.

Harry threw down the photo album in frustration, tears now flowing freely. The once-roaring fire was now merely glowing embers. Everyone else, stuffed with cake, had gone to bed, sleepy and full.

A rapping sound shook him out of his thoughts. Someone was knocking at the door. As he approached it, Harry wondered who would be at the door at this hour.

A dark thought struck him. He grabbed his wand and moved stealthily towards the rapping.

Looking through the peephole and sighing in relief, he let the visitor in.

"Good evening, Mister Potter."

"Good evening Professor McGonagall. Why are you here?" he said rather rudely, although he did not mean for it to come out that way.

"To wish you a happy birthday," she said, giving him a small smile, "and to give you this." She held out a small black envelope that Harry could tell was padded inside and held something important.

Harry took it from her and motioned her inside. She looked tired, distressed, and overworked. He had a questioning look upon his face; she noticed and smiled.

"It was found in Professor Dumbledore's bank vault. I do not know what it contains; there was a note with it that said it should be given to you on your seventeenth birthday," she said with the appearance of a mixture of pity and reward.

Harry didn't want to open it right away.

"Can I fix you some tea, Professor?" Harry asked politely.

"That would be wonderful, thank you."

Harry sauntered over to the kitchen, where in a few minutes he had a silver kettle of hot water, two teabags, and two mugs on a tray. They sat in silence for a while until Professor McGonagall realized that he wasn't comfortable with opening it in front of her.

"Well, I must get going. Have a very happy birthday, Harry, and please be safe," she said, getting up and giving him a friendly peck on the cheek. Harry got her coat and watched her Apparate away, finally closing the door and slowly strode over to the couch where the package was sitting. Did he dare open it?

With a mixture of excitement and fear, Harry slid his finger under the seal of the package and peeked inside. There were a few pieces of parchment and a small white jewelry box. First, he took out the parchment and read.

_Dear Harry,_

_Happy seventeenth birthday. I do not know if I will be alive as you are reading this, but please never despair if I am gone. The small box enclosed contains something Sirius gave to me before he was shipped to Azkaban for the murder he did not commit._

_I do believe these will be of great value to you, and I thought that you would like them. Keep them safe. They were of great value to your parents also, you will soon learn as you find out what is inside._

_Always believe in yourself. Through dark times, be the light. Keep your good friends close. Do not lean onto what others may say. And always remember, though I may not be here in being, I am here in spirit. I will always be watching over you, Harry._

_Professor Albus Dumbledore_

Harry wiped away the tears that were, once again, falling carelessly out of his sparkling green eyes, and opened the white box that lain in the envelope.

Inside were two rings.

The smaller one was gold. It had diamonds in the shape of a crown. The light reflected off writing inside the ring. It said _I will love until beyond the day I die._

The larger one was also gold. It had no diamonds but had an intricate gold display on the front. Looking at it long enough, Harry discovered it was a stag entwined with a phoenix. There was also writing in the inside. _Through dark times my love for you shall not fade._

James' and Lily's wedding rings.


End file.
